


Change of Scenery

by zanthe



Series: Dragon!Byleth AU [3]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Dragon AU, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-02
Updated: 2019-09-02
Packaged: 2020-10-05 11:07:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,516
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20487884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zanthe/pseuds/zanthe
Summary: A fit of art block prompts Byleth to find Ignatz something new to paint.





	Change of Scenery

**Author's Note:**

  * For [nylo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/nylo/gifts).

> Dragon Byleth for reference: https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/608830703156592656/609582091793072128/unknown.png

It was a fine day for painting, Ignatz had decided when he woke up. The air was pleasant and refreshing, the sky was nearly cloudless, and there wasn't much wind to distract him. It was a day off, too. A perfect opportunity! 

Or so he thought... The aspiring painter stood gazing at an empty canvas in frustration, he just couldn't seem to get any creativity flowing. "Maybe I shouldn't paint the scenery today," he sighed, packing brushes and paints away without noticing the footsteps creeping up on him. When Ignatz turned around, he nearly dropped his canvas in surprise. 

"O-o-oh! Professor!" He chuckled nervously, "I didn't hear you. Is something wrong?" Byleth shook his head and offered a hand, helping him finish packing up his supplies. 

"No luck?" He asked, and Ignatz made a dejected face. 

"No, unfortunately. I guess the view here stopped inspiring me, I was hoping to redraw that painting from five years ago, do you remember it?" The smile on Byleth's face was answer enough, and he continued, "I haven't had much luck painting lately, even though I want to, I can't seem to get it to work. Maybe it's the war," Ignatz frowned, and a hand was on his shoulder in an instant, a warm look on his professor's face that put him at ease. "Thanks, professor. I'm trying not to let it get to me." 

Byleth hummed for a moment, "Maybe a change of scenery?" he prompted, and Ignatz blinked in thought. 

"I suppose it would be nice to get away from the monastery for a while, there's not far we could go though." Byleth led him out past the bridge to the cathedral, and Ignatz felt his stomach sink in realization. "Oh, no professor, really." He shook as they approached the goddess tower, the edge of the cliff face where the updrafts were strongest. The artist gripped the strap of his bag close to his chest nervously, almost pleading to his professor, and in return got nothing but a pointed grin as Byleth transformed, perching himself against the edge of the barrier that kept them from plummeting off the edge. 

His dragon form was still a sight to behold. Ignatz shook himself from the thought, hesitating as a feathered tail pulled him closer and a wing lowered to let him on. "Just promise you won't do anything reckless," his voice trembled, and Byleth nodded. The young man took a deep breath, steeling himself, and then climbed on, seating himself at the base of the dragon's neck and gripping tight to the soft mane that ran down the back of his neck. 

There was a pause, Ignatz kept his eyes shut as Byleth unfurled his wings and waited for an updraft before lunging forward, letting the wind carry them up. It took all of his strength not to panic at the feeling of falling, and Ignatz didn't open his eyes again until things seemed to calm, and when he did it was almost a beautiful enough sight to distract him from the altitude. Almost. 

It was dizzying being so high up, he'd never gone so high, even on the rare instances of patrol duty. He'd never go higher than the tallest point of the monastery, never let the wyverns stray over the edge of the cliffs, it was much too terrifying. Even the professor's presence now didn't feel like enough, he simply held on tighter and buried his face in his fur. 

Byleth tried to slow his flight a little more, but couldn't without stalling, and a wobble in his flight caused Ignatz to yelp. "Maybe this was a bad idea, no, definitely. This was a bad idea," He repeated into his fur, voice almost drowned out by the wind. 

After a few minutes of murmuring the same few sentences, Byleth had enough. He beat his wings, once, twice, and leaned his head back to nip at his student's hair, trying to get him to look up. When he finally met his gaze, Ignatz apologized. He kept his grip, but he peered back to see they'd gotten far enough from the monastery to make it appear as a mere speck in the distance, and when he looked forward he saw they were approaching the northern coast. 

The descent was nearly as scary as the ascent, but the long weeks of practice had left Byleth skilled at landing. He landed as gentle as possible, and Ignatz practically leapt off, landing not so gently onto the sand with a loud "oof!" He straightened himself as best he could on wobbly legs, and took a moment to let his surroundings sink in. They'd come to this beach before several times in the past, to fight off beasts and bandits, but this time it was tranquil, lacking in enemies. 

Byleth didn't bother transforming back, he stretched in a similar fashion to the cats at the monastery, back arched, wings outstretched, and a yawn that revealed small, pointed teeth. Ignatz watched him flop onto the sand, taking in the sunshine. It must feel especially nice, assuming dragons were cold blooded. Hot sand, hot sun, black feathers, cold blood, he was almost jealous. 

Then, an idea struck him. "Professor?" He asked, hesitating a moment. He'd wanted to ask this five years ago, but never had the courage nor the chance. "May I paint you like this?" The breeze blew, and the few seconds of silence were enough to begin pulling Ignatz into a panic, but before he could start talking, Byleth nodded, closing his eyes contently. The artist wasted no time in pulling his supplies from his bag, and he sat down on the sand and got to work.

It was a bit of a mess trying to keep everything sorted well, the breeze would blow and get bits of sand in the paint, and he had to readjust until he found the angle where sand stopped scratching the canvas. Byleth hardly moved an inch, and soon he was convinced his professor-turned-dragon had fallen asleep, but it didn't matter as long as he remained still. 

Time went on, art was not a fast process, and ideally Ignatz would put his work in progress aside to continue another day, allow himself to take his time, but time wasn't something you come across frequently during war, so he opted to work more quickly. He worked in quick strokes, taking shorter moments to examine his subject wiped his brow with charcoal and paint on his fingers unknowingly. 

It wasn't until the sun had begun to set that he'd call it done, and Byleth perked up, a curious purr emerging from his throat as Ignatz scrambled to put his supplies away. He stalked over, and Ignatz held up his painting sheepishly for his professor to observe. In the moment he'd looked away, Byleth returned to human form, plucking the painting from his hands to get a better look. A few seconds later, he looked to Ignatz curiously. "Do I really look like this?" He asked, and Ignatz grimaced.

"Did I make a mistake somewhere? I'm sorry, " He stood to reexamine his painting, but Byleth chuckled.

"_I'm _ sorry," he smiled, "I didn't mean it to come off as an insult. I've never really seen myself fully in dragon form, your painting is beautiful, truly." His voice trailed off, and he watched his student visibly relax. The painting was beautiful, carrying the same feeling of a cat content in a beam of sunlight. It made Byleth wonder if he'd picked up the habits of the monastery cats. 

"I'll need a few minutes to let it dry some more, if that's ok?" He glanced at the sun, not yet touching the horizon but closing in all too fast. Byleth simply nodded, transforming once more in preparation. 

The flight back to the monastery was as scary as the first, although the sight of small villages below was one Ignatz would be sure to remember. Little specks of light on the ground below, a vast sea of stars above. It was enough to forget about his fear of flying, just for a few moments. He kept his eyes open when he sunk back into Byleth's fur, noticing how it seemed to glitter in the moonlight too, all of his plumage seemed to in fact. It was easier to see it at night, the iridescence caused by the sun wasn't present in the light of the moon. He wondered if Byleth noticed it too.

They managed to make it back to the monastery in time for curfew, and Ignatz said his goodnight to the professor, thanking him for the journey today. In his room, Ignatz checked to make sure the painting hadn't been smudged on their way back, setting it to properly air on his desk. Maybe he'd gift it to the professor later, or maybe he could add to it a little more. He'd think about it more when he woke up. For now, he had a new problem to mull over. 

The copious amounts of sand he'd accidentally managed to bring back with him. 

**Author's Note:**

> Alternate title: if i mention sand at all it will end in me hating it. (The sand. Fuck sand.)  
Also im real happy making these, i hardly ever break 800 words ;w;


End file.
